House Dems trying to overcome differences on policing bills
House Democrats are struggling to pass a long-sought policing and public safety package
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats struggled on Thursday to pass a long-sought policing and public safety package as internal party differences threatened to derail legislation they had hoped to make central to their election-year pitch.
A procedural vote to start debate barely succeeded, 216-215, after Democratic leaders spent hours wrangling with progressives who were threatening to block the package. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of California asked Democrats to hold the vote open, saying another GOP lawmaker was on the way, but Democrats gaveled it to a close.
Final votes were expected Thursday afternoon. Passage would send the bills to the Senate, where the legislation's fate is uncertain.
The package would increase money for local police departments, including those with fewer than 125 officers, and provide aid for de-escalation training and mental health services. A priority is reducing fatal encounters between police and people with mental illness.
